Alrighty so yeah sorry about today and we'll see if I can get this email out, I'm super tired and today has been a rough day but its all good.
So this weeks been pretty fun and tough at the same time. We have spent most of the week trying to find new investigators and walking a lot. We don't have any new investigators and hardly anyone is progressing. But we did have a baptism this last week. Her name is Josimar, she is 65 and her daughter is a member and one of her sons is a member thats not active. She has been super excited for her baptism for about 2 weeks now and its been diffifult sometimes because she has Parkinsons and so sometimes she cant do very much because if the pain, but she has an incredible testimony and was another person to whom the Spirit guided us to her. The baptism was also super good and funny. So we got to her house at about5:50 and she was walking up and down the street (she never leaves her house!!!!!!!) so we were shocked, she was just so excited and then when the car got there to give her a ride, we realized they didn't have space for us(the missionaries). So we decided to walk to the baptism. We had 10 mins to walk somewhere that normally takes about 30. So we got a call at about 6:30 from the other missionaries in the district asking where we were because everything was readu for the baptism but the missionaries were not there. I don't know how we did it but we got there in 20 mins. Then Ana Paula our recent convert showed up right when we did and she had been scheduled to give the talk but decided that she wasnt going to go to the baptism any more but showed up at the last minute. After talking to her for a while she consented to bear her testimony. She bore a SUPER powerful testimoney and quoted a scripture perfectly that she had memorized from seminary.................yeah we just had huge smiles on our faces the entire baptism. Then Josimar went to get baptized and she can't bend her knees and so when she came up out of the water she didn't put her legs back down and almost went right back in. We had asked one of the brothern who is a realitevely large and tall man to stand on the stairs and it was a huge miracle that he was there and able to help. When she was finally standing the first thing she said is that she drank some water but that she felt so amazing. She said she had to clean her insides too or something of the sort. She has made such a huge change in her countenance.
Also this week we had one of the zone leaders with us and we had marked a lesson with the Relief Society President's daughter and so the lesson fell but we said we would take her to go do addresses or something in the street(she is about 20 and we are trying to help her decide to serve a mission) but nothing was working so we figured well she liked teaching Ana Paula's mom last time , lets go there and let her share the message. So she shared Jacob 3:1 and then started to explain a little of the scripture and Luciana (Ana Paula's mom) started crying and explained everything for us. Everything that we hadnt understood before about her ex- husband and her boyfriend that was killed 9 months back and I was just amazed. She opened up and the spirit was so strong. I just couldn't believe that it was happening right before my eyes and how grateful she was that we had come and shared the gospel with her and her children and that she wants they to have a way better life than she has had and it was truly a wonderful experience. So yes while this week has been difficult and really painfuly hard sometimes, there have been pearls of great worth and amazing experiences that have occured.
As for what I'm studying, I'm reading in Alma aroudn chapter 44 or 45. I'm trying to really draw back a focus on the book of mormon and the Jesus the Christ. I'm trying to work a lot more on myself and being a better person. We had the opportunity last night to have a devotional with all the stake with the mission president to hear the testimony of Pres. Young, Sister Young and their daughter Carla that just finished serving in LA Spanish speaking about a week or two ago. (I'm not sure if missionaries were supposed to be there but we took our two recent converts Yuri and Ana Paula because they want to serve missions too so I think we were alright..... ;) )and When his daughter was speaking it reminded me of something I had noticed in other missionaries that had come from the states and a few of the missionaries that I had already seen going home. They have a light, they have something different, they glow and they truly have developed christ like attributes. Here in brazil I feel that it doesnt happen any where near as often as it does in the states and so I've been pondering and thinking about what is different and how can I become like them. I resolved that it has to do with the book of Mormon and developing the christ like attributes and having a faith so profund in the Lord and His Atonement.
Anyways, I love you all and hope you all have a awesome week.
Love Elder SimonsenChildren, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.
Honour thy father and mother; (which is the first commandment with promise;)
No comments:
Post a Comment